Utilizing the exhaust of steam- pu m ps



(No Model.)

H. W. ROBIE &'W. H. LYONS. UTILIZINGTHE EXHAUST OF STEAM PUMPS. No. 286,074. Patented Oct. 2; 1883.

INVENTOR flu QMM ATTORNEYS.

tlNITED STATES PATENT Orricn'.

HENRY XV. OI-HE, OF PORTSMOUTH, AND \VILLIAM H. LYONS, OF BEBKLEY, VIRG INTA.

UTILIZING THE EXHAUST OF STEAM-PUMPS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 286,074, dated October 2, 1883.

Application filed February 19, 1883.

(No model.)

To all whom, it 12mg concern.-

Ze it known that we, HENRY \V. Ronm, of Portsmouth, in the county of Norfolk, and \VILLIAM H. Lvons, of Berkley, in the count of Norfolk and State of Virginia, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Steam-Pumps, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Our invention consists of an improved ar- 1o rangcmcnt of apparatus for utilizing the exhaust stcam of a steam-pump by discharging the steam into the suction side of the pump, to utilize the atmospheric pressure gained by condensing the exhaust-steam, and to con 15 dense the steam for returning the heat of it, or most of the heat, to the boiler, the said arrangement consisting of a branched exhaustpipe connecting with both ends of a doubleacting pump, and each branch having a check valve to prevent reaction on the steam-engine when the compression of the pump takes place, the arrangement being such that the exhaust of the steam-cylinder opens at the moment when the water-piston has arrived at or nearly at the end of its stroke, and while the partial vacuum, which always occurs at this time, exists, into which the steam flows through the water in the lower part of the cylinder, to be quickly condensed, and the va- 0 por remaining in the stcanrpipes and issuing from the steam-cylinder on the back-stroke of .thc steam-piston will be taken up and con densed by the suction of the reverse stroke of the pump-piston, all as hereinafter fully de- 3 5 scribed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in both the figures.

Figure 1 is a horizontal section of a steam pump constructed according to our invention, and Fig. 2 is an end elevation.

The steam-cylinder a and the pumpcylinder Z and their pistons 0 d are to be in any common or approved arrangement, together with their valves and valve-gear.

In the exhaust-pipe c of the steanrcylinder we connect a branch, f, between the steam.-

f, to be used when it isjrcquircd to discharge the exhaust into the air through valve g, which it is preferred to do for a short time when starting the pump, to enable the current of inflowing water to the pump to be well established. Then by opening valve h and closing valve it will be seen that when the valve of the steam-cylinder opens the exhaust at or about the time when the steam-piston'has arrived at the end of its stroke, the pump-piston, being also near the end of its stroke, will have produced the partial vacuum which commonly occurs by reason of the resistances which prevent the water from entirely filling the space behind the piston, into which vacuum the principal part of the exhaust will be received and readily condensed, while the smaller portion, following the return motion of the piston, will be drawn in with the water at the other end of the pump-cylinder and condensed.

It is to be noticed that by the employment of the check-valves j in the branches 1? of the exhaust-pipe this method of utilizing the exhaust-steam is made practicable with a doubleacting pump; and it will be seen that it e11- ables all the heat of the exhaust-steam, eX- cept what is lost by radiation, to be returned from steam-pumps of any kind to the boiler, and thus be economized; and the invention applies to engines for water-works, fire-en gines, and condensing-engines, except those 0 requiring surfacecondensers.

.Having thus fully described our invention, we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a double-acting steampump, the eX- 5 haustpipe of the steam-cylinder, connected 7 cylinder by branches f i, having check-valves with eachendofthepump-cylinder by branches j, and said exhaust-pipe having stop-Valves 7L 1', having check or equivalent Valves opening and g, substantially as described. into the pump-cylinder, substantially as de- HENRY W. ROBIE.

scribed. v WILLIAM H. LYONS.

2. In-a d0uble-acting steam-pump, the eX- Witnesses:

haust-steam pipe connecting with the pump- GEO. E. BEATTY,

FRANK CRAIG. 

